David Ignatius

I am a columnist for the Washington Post, a former Harvard Kennedy School fellow and author of twelve espionage thrillers.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Over the moon (so to speak) that "Publishers Weekly" has just given my new novel "Phantom Orbit" about space warfare a starred review and called it "contemporary cloak-and-dagger intrigue at its finest." https://t.co/PdVAiKtEEW

[Marc Polymeropoulos @Mpolymer]

So David actually took tine to read all the declassified docs (yes, thank u for doing this). An interesting picture emerges…. https://t.co/6DWGaT7k6e

[Nathan Kiker @nathan_kiker]

@GEBogden and I had a fantastic chat with @IgnatiusPost on @ClearerThnTruth!

Some key takeaways:
🔹 MidEast: Iran/Turkey reshape strategy.
🔹 China: US tech reliance is a massive liability.
🔹 Ukraine: Drone tech outpaces stability.

Listen below!
https://t.co/Li2xtQWQpF

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Playing from 01:02 https://t.co/NKkhD2uWDs

[Yoni Appelbaum @YAppelbaum]

BREAKING: One of America's most-admired general officers, CD Donahue, is the latest Army leader to be forced out at the Pentagon, @nancyayoussef and @missy_ryan report: https://t.co/v7co5kMo5n

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@CONELRAD6401240 @GeraldFSeib @JessBravin What a wonderful journalist Brian Lamb was. Always clear, fair, probing. A rare person.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@ghoshworld Way scarier than my books. Pakistan has nukes.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@nakashimae Kudos to Ellen, the best intelligence reporter in the business.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@siobhan_ogrady @washingtonpost Superb reporting as we saw from Siobhan first to last. The Post and its readers have been so lucky to have her work.

[Marc Polymeropoulos @Mpolymer]

Per my tv hit today on @Morning_Joe …. https://t.co/rvR7B4StIc ….. I mentioned a classic book written by @IgnatiusPost about the CIA in Lebanon in the mid 80s… and how I gave it to every young case officer in CIA’s Near East Division who I ever managed (true)….. It’s the best book on espionage I’ve ever read (fiction-ish 🤫) that deals with the actual feel of the Middle East and agent running. Enjoy!

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Kevin Klose embodied the qualities that make journalism lovable, despite itself. He was decent, smart, generous to others, persevering in hard times, clear-eyed in his view of the Soviet Union in its dying days, and always committed to his work. A rare person, who helped build the Washington Post and NPR. He will be missed.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@DrBennieHarris1 @USCUpstate @washingtonpost What a pleasure to be in South Carolina with Chancellor Harris and three of his predecessors. Visiting this campus is a reminder of what works!

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Some good news from Lebanon

[Lebanese Presidency @LBpresidency]

صدر عن مكتب الإعلام في رئاسة الجمهورية البيان الاتي:

بناء على المبادرة التي اطلقها رئيس الجمهورية العماد جوزاف عون والتي ترتكز على العمل الدبلوماسي من خلال الإعلان عن وقف لإطلاق النار والذهاب إلى التفاوض المباشر مع إسرائيل ، وبعد الاتصالات الدولية والعربية التي اجراها الرئيس عون مؤخراً في ضوء تصاعد الاعتداءات الاسرائيلية على لبنان ، قررت الإدارة الاميركية تكليف وزارة الخارجية الاميركية القيام بدور الوسيط بين لبنان واسرائيل .
وتنفيذا لذلك ، وبناء على توجيهات الرئيس عون للسفيرة اللبنانية في واشنطن ، تم إتصال هاتفي عند التاسعة مساء بتوقيت بيروت ، هو الأول بين لبنان ممثلا بسفيرته في واشنطن ندى حمادة معوض وإسرائيل ممثلة بسفيرها في واشنطن يحئيل ليتر ، وبمشاركة سفير الولايات المتحدة الاميركية في بيروت ميشال عيسى الموجود في واشنطن .
وتم خلال الاتصال التوافق على عقد اول اجتماع يوم الثلاثاء المقبل في مقر الخارجية الاميركية للبحث في الإعلان عن وقف لإطلاق النار وموعد بدء التفاوض بين لبنان واسرائيل برعاية أميركية .

[Washington Post Opinions @PostOpinions]

"A war that began without a clear strategy for victory seemed to be converging, perhaps inevitably, on an endgame missing a formula for peace," @IgnatiusPost writes. https://t.co/QxO6lXO8P2

[Washington Post Opinions @PostOpinions]

"A new part of warfare that we saw in the Iran war is the use of cheap drones that can do enormous damage."

@IgnatiusPost talks about how drones will make the world look very different in the near future.

🔗 Submit a question for David's next chat with readers here: https://t.co/P6PEX9uRki

[Washington Post Live @PostLive]

“The ability of the United States to defend its forces against drones is less than it needs to be.” - David Ignatius (@IgnatiusPost) of @PostOpinions on the threat of Iranian drones

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

@arabnews @GulfTimes_QATAR Thoughtful piece by my friend Jamil Mroue.

[Washington Post Opinions @PostOpinions]

"U.S. intelligence analysts have assessed that this campaign has a low likelihood of creating a stable, modernizing government," @IgnatiusPost writes. https://t.co/INcP1ESWui

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

On a Washington Post online chat with readers today, the first question was about what's ahead for our beloved newspaper. Here's my answer, which the Post published online:

I can't confirm the rumors because I don't know what management is planning. But as a 40-year veteran of The Post and former foreign editor, I want to celebrate the news coverage the paper's reporters have delivered and hope that despite the rumors we hold tight to what made The Post a great newspaper. I came to The Post when the now-legendary Tony Kornheiser, Mike Wilbon and Tom Boswell were our sportswriters. I was foreign editor when our brave reporter Caryle Murphy won a Pulitzer for her coverage of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait (most other reporters fled; she stayed), and when David Remnick was our Moscow correspondent. I could go on, but the point is that there is a chain of excellence in our coverage of foreign news, sports and everything else that matters that's very precious and impossible to replace. We were always more frugal in our reporting expenses than the NYT or WSJ, and in tough times for The Post financially, that needs to continue. But as someone who loves The Post, I want it to remain a powerful, strong, global newspaper.

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Listen to Dr. Tom Catena, a courageous Catholic relief doctor in South Sudan, explain why the Azerbaijani charges against his friend @RubenVardanyan_ are “completely false and absurd.”

[Tom Catena @CatenaTom]

I have known @RubenVardanyan_ for years. The charges brought up against him are completely false and absurd. The international community must act now to secure his release and of all Armenian POWs unjustly held in Azerbaijan. #FreeRubenVardanyan #HumanRights #FreeArmenianPOWs

[David Ignatius @IgnatiusPost]

Note this warning from human-rights lawyer @JaredGenser about the sharply declining health of his client @RubenVardanyan_ who is on a hunger strike to protest his trial in Baku. Ruben co-founded @Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, whose motto “Gratitude in action” was never more
relevant.

[Jared Genser @JaredGenser]

Please see this important update on my client @RubenVardanyan_’s situation. One week later, his blood pressure is up to 140/11 and he has lost six kgs (13 lbs) & the #Azerbaijan military court refused five motions to postpone the trial and insisted Ruben attend, despite his being on the verge of passing out. #HumanRights